page_title: Vinicius and Tom
section_title: Use of Vinicius in Olympic wrestling events
hierarchical_section_title: Vinicius and Tom / History / Use of Vinicius in Olympic wrestling events
caption_attribution_description: Русский: Бои иранского борца Хабиболла Ахлаги на Олимпийских играх 2016. Греко-римский стиль вес до 85 кг. Português: RIO DE JANEIRO (Tasnim) - Iranian lutador greco-romano Habibollah Akhlaghi experimentou uma amarga derrota contra a Alemanha Denis Kudla Maksymilian na segunda-feira e foi eliminado dos Jogos Olímpicos Rio 2016, no Rio de Janeiro. masculinas Greco-romana 85 kg. Français&#160;: RIO DE JANEIRO (Tasnim) - Iranian lutteur gréco-romain Habibollah Akhlaghi a connu une amère défaite contre Denis Kudla Maksymilian Allemagne lundi et a été éliminé des Jeux Olympiques Rio 2016 à Rio de Janeiro. Gréco-romaine 85 kg hommes. English: RIO DE JANEIRO (Tasnim) – Iranian Greco-Roman wrestler Habibollah Akhlaghi experienced a bitter defeat vs. Germany’s Denis Maksymilian Kudla on Monday and was eliminated from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Men's Greco-Roman 85 kg.
context_page_description: Vinicius is the official mascot of the 2016 Summer Olympics, and Tom is the official mascot of the 2016 Summer Paralympics. Both events were held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The mascots were created by São Paulo-based animation company Birdo, which was selected by a national tender process that began in November 2012. Vinicius' design represents Brazilian wildlife, combining aspects of cats, monkeys, and birds, while Tom's design represents Brazilian plant life.
  Tenders to create the mascots were only accepted from Brazilian companies. The final designs were unanimously selected in August 2013 by a panel of judges comprising media professionals and representatives from various Olympic organizations. They were revealed to the public without names on 23 November 2014. Following a three-week online vote which ended on 14 December 2014, the public named the two mascots after Vinicius de Moraes and Tom Jobim, the co-writers of the 1962 bossa nova song "The Girl from Ipanema".
  Media involving the mascots includes various merchandise and a series of two-minute animated shorts that were broadcast on Cartoon Network Brazil.
context_section_description: In wrestling, coaches may challenge a referee's call by throwing a predetermined "soft object" into the ring. Although this is normally a foam brick, wrestling rules do not specify what the soft object must be. During the 2016 Olympic wrestling events, the organizers provided coaches with soft plush dolls of Vinicius to throw into the ring when they wished to challenge a call. One wrestler's coach received a Vinicius doll with a red shirt, while the opponent's coach received one with a blue shirt.
  Many observers found the practice humorous. Luke Meredith, a writer for the Associated Press, wrote that it "has already led to a few amusing moments where a coach, enraged with a call gone against his wrestler, had to reach for a tiny stuffed animal and fling it across the mat to get the referee's attention." NBC Sports commentators for their Olympic coverage began referring to Vinicius as "the challenge mascot." Dustin Nelson, a news writer for the website Thrillist, wrote that the mascot took "a little of the anger out of a challenge." Jason Bryant, the in-house commentator for wrestling at the 2016 Olympics, was slightly surprised to see the practice at the Olympics, given the emphasis there on "protocol", but he eventually commented that it does not matter what the challenge object is, particularly if it has cultural significance to the location of the competition. Coach Mike Malinconico argued that the practice does not belong at the Olympic Games, stating, "The fate of one of my athletes who has been training for this specific moment for four years hangs in the balance of a referee's error. And I have a stuffed animal in my hands."
caption: A referee in men's Greco-Roman 85 kg wrestling picks up a plush doll of Vinicius, thrown by coaches into the ring at Rio 2016 to challenge referee calls.
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